local police say open carry is illegal

[foxxie02]

the local police of terre haute say that to open carry is illegal but county and state say it is legal. i have read the legal briefs but wonder why the difference in views, is there a local law i am missing or are the local law not informed or dont want to deal with this. am i inviting getting cuffed or a felony stop if i open carry in this town. any suggestions or first hand knowledge??

[dblagent]

Great question and it has come up before on Glock Talk with no truly good answer. Known view in Terre Haute, and apparently there is no one with authority to tell the city different I guess.

No one has ever seen a law stating it is illegal, maybe that is the first step, having them prove that it is? Ask nicely to see where this is stated?

[CarmelHP]

It's not illegal. The burden of proof is on the prosecution, not the defense.

[melensdad]

I am not a lawyer, but I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express, so given that, here is my expert advice. The state of Indiana has a constitution that forbids local/home rule laws. Consequently state law would override any city and the state says that open carry is LEGAL.

It is very likely that if you OC in Terre Haute you will be arrested by the local police. It is also very likely that you will ultimately be released and ultimately receive an apology. However, it is also likely that you will spend some of your private funds defending yourself and proving your case in the judicial system. Will you get money out of the deal due to a 'false arrest' charge or some other thing. I doubt it. It is more likely the charges will be dropped somewhere in the process and the city will learn a lesson.

That said, your gun will be confiscated and may be returned in less than pristine condition.

Now, if you choose to make a point, the first thing I would do is contact a criminal defense lawyer and ask for a legal opinion. Then I would ask if he/she is willing to defend you in a test case and what it will cost. Make your choice after that.

OR, you could do some research at the state level and find all the laws that may apply. Then you could call the local PD (get names when you talk to them, record the day/time you talked to them, etc) and find out what the local PD says. Do NOT argue, simply ask them if it is illegal, and if so if that is based on state, county or city laws. Then ask them if they can cite the code. If not ask if they know who can. Again, do NOT argue, simply inquire.

Repeat the telephone process with the city prosecutors office, the county sheriffs office and the county prosecutor. TAKE COPIOUS AMOUNTS OF DETAILED NOTES.

Then, after you do that, write a letter to the editor. Do not mail it to the newspaper, post it here and ask for suggestions. Let people here help you edit/improve the letter. Then when you are satisfied that the letter is as good as you can get it, mail it to every newspaper in the county.

JMHO

[dblagent]

Glad someone has some ideas, there should be a way to fix this as they are basically getting away with making their own law, when there is none! Maybe a call from a state authority to the city could somehow be arranged to fix the city's stance?

[rhino]

Here's the deal with Terre Haute: the management of the police departments don't want you carrying a gun period. Many of the police officers agree.

They've been selling the lie about an alleged ordinance prohibiting open carry in Terre Haute for a long, long time, but when pressed to cite the ordinance, they can't do it. At least one city official (according to a report on GlockTalk) admitted there was no such ordinance.

The Terre Haute Municipal Code is online. You can read it from stem to stern and won't find a prohibition on open carry. That's because it does not exist.

Some of them are quite simply lying to you, because they know better. Some are ignorant, non-thinking dupes of their superiors and/or peers who simply parrot "what they've been told."

There is no ordinance. If anyone can find proof of one, please feel free to correct me.

Now, I shall delve into the conjecture portion of my tirade. It is my opinion that at least some of them float this lie about the non-existent ordinance to either cow you into submission, or failing that, to goad you into getting "excited" enough where they can arrest you for disorderly conduct. Again, the latter part is my conjecture, but since it has happened, I'm comfortable with it.

The bottom line:

• It is not illegal to carry openly in Terre Haute, assuming you have a valid License to Carry Handgun or an equivalent from another state or country if you are a nonresident.
• The police can and often will arrest you for whatever whim strikes their fancy if they think they can get away with it. Keep that in mind if you choose to carry openly there.

Given all of that, I carry openly in Terre Haute as often as I can. I've never had a problem. I also have a planned response if I am accosted:

• Be courteous.
• Present my license to carry if the demand is made by an LEO.
• Listen politely to the lies and/or ignorant drivel.
• When it's my turn to speak, smile and say, "No, thank you. Am I free to go?"

[foxxie02]

I welcome info and suggestions on this issue since I too originally came from the pri(peoples republic of illinois) and have been beat down that guns are bad, even though I am an army vet. I recently even quoted to a man I saw oc at the local Krogers store and said that I was sure that open carry is illegal, I owe him an apology. I usually cc but would like to oc if I felt like it so I welcome input from those who have already dealt with this issue. Thanks.

[Jay]

quote.......

state says that open carry is LEGAL.

I would respectfully/technically disagree. The Indiana Code does NOT specifically address open carry. By that omission, open carry is NOT illegal. Here's a link to the relevant Indiana code.

Indiana Code 35-47-2

[munky_3434]

i have a few friends on thpd. i will holler at them and see if i can find anything out. let me say that for everything i have observed thpd is really one hell of a dept.

[Bigum1969]

Does the Terre Haure PD drag their feet on LTCHs?